Wind Symphony Wind Ensemble

presents their Wind Ensemble & Wind Symphony Conductors Wind Ensemble Dr. Frank Tracz Mr. Eric Thompson Mr. Brett Butler Wind Ensemble Dr. Alex Wimmer March 9, 2021 - 7:30 PM McCain Auditorium Wind Sympony Conductor: Dr. Alex Wimmer Finding the Sun (2019) ............................................................... Grace Baugher (b. 1995) Nimrod (1899/1965)...............................................................Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) Arr. Alfred Reed (1921-2005) Arabesque (2009) ............................................................................ Samuel Hazo (b. 1966) Wind Ensemble Conductor: Dr. Frank Tracz Dancing Fire (2016) .............................................................................. Kevin Day (b. 1996) Eric Thompson, Guest Conductor Beside Still Waters (2011) ....................................................... David Gillingham (b.1947) Brett Butler, Guest Conductor 2021 Wind Symphony Roster FLUTE Trumpet Jordyn Allen Ann Barker Kate Brull Aaron Peterson Sam Crawford Michele Treloggen Brenda Heard Kate Washburn • Kristen Schrag • Gabby Yager French Horn Gus Bibler • OBOE Alex Cannady Alli Gladfelder Cara Dister Lily Linville Isabel Grafel BASSOON Trombone Rachel Woodbury Alianna Carlton Blake Davis CLARINET Chris Hovis • Corrine Bergstrom Peri Carney EUPHONIUM Krissy Davis • Shelly Alexander Sarah Kelley Michael Walker • Haley Rader Tuba BASS CLARINET Robert Brown Grace Dice Joey Lederhos ALTO SAXOPHONE PERCUSSION Katherine Anderson Gaby Fluke Julia McCabe • Ethan Jeffries Nathan Smith • TENOR SAXOPHONE Jacob Morgan Jasmine Bates Isaiah Petrie Christopher Wells BARITONE SAXOPHONE Abby Vetter PIANO Kevin Jackson • Principal Section Player 2021 Wind Ensemble Roster FLUTE TRUMPET Jenna Dominguez Mitchell Betancourt Nicole Hoppas Gillian Falcon Jessica Minnich • Kyle Grimes Amaya Molinar Caleb Niehoff Bailey Tadda Haley Schwartz • Rylie Toom Jessica Vanstory OBOE FRENCH HORN Taylor Crawford Kylee Gardner Deandra Horner • Katie Kimmel Elliot Peters BASSOON Sophia Shaar • Josh Brandt TROMBONE CLARINET Jakob Keith • Mark Ahlman Tyler Long Taton Bennett William Osorio Audrey Farrell Daniel Smith Matthew Johnson • Crystal Rathburn EUPHONIUM Jakob Ferreria BASS CLARINET Justin Koegeboehn • Megan Paulsen TUBA Clark Elford • ALTO SAXOPHONE Hannah Mancini PERCUSSION Jacob Peterson Braedon Bomgardner Nosara Vargas • Brett Butler • Taylor Clark TENOR SAXOPHONE Thomas Denk Sarah Wolfe John Eldridge Brandon Wells BARITONE SAXOPHONE James Probst PIANO Thomas Denk • Principal Section Player WindProgram Symphony Notes Finding the Sun Grace Baugher (b. 1995) Finding the Sun is made up of 3 pieces written as an exploration of the band grading systems. This experiment highlighted irregularities within the systems and proved that they are not reliable as a consistent resource for composers. In this experiment, I wrote the same piece at 3 grade levels adhering to the set systems available, drawing on my own experiences as a composer and performer, and researching other composers who had altered pieces to various skill levels. The three versions of Finding the Sun were the result. On a more personal note, the piece itself was a documentation of my experience writing the pieces for my thesis project. This programmatic music cycles through the peaks and valleys of the process and depicts moments of self-doubt and celebration. When I began the process of writing, the piece was called “Up into the Night.” This darker imagery eventually didn’t match the direction of the piece. A line from “May it Be” by Enya from The Lord of the Rings sums up my experience and vision for the piece perfectly: “When the night is overcome, you may rise to find the sun.” Finding the Sun reminds me that life is a process and that even when the bad days seem too much, the sun with always rise the next day. Grace Baugher is a Kansas-born composer whose music employs memorable melodic material and whimsical styles. She is a graduate of the University of Tennessee in Knoxville with a Masters in Music Composition and Graduate Certificate in Music Theory Pedagogy. Previously she studied at Kansas State University where she had pieces performed by many ensembles, faculty, and guest artists. Considered one of the rising young voices in wind band, her music has been performed across the United States at a variety of conferences and schools, and now around the globe. Most recently, her piece “Remembering the Remarkable” was selected as a top 100 piece for wind band in 2020 by Bandworld. She is currently finishing a Graduate Certificate in Music Education to become certified to teach and work with bands beyond her compositions. Program notes by Grace Baugher Nimrod Sir Edward Elgar (1857-1934) - Arr. Alfred Reed (1921-2005) The Enigma Variations were written for orchestra in 1899 and bore the dedication “To My Friends Pictured Within.” The theme and fourteen variations catapulted Elgar to international acclaim. The story is told of how Elgar, returning home after a long day of giving violin lessons, sat down to unwind at the piano and tinkered by improvising. His wife commented on one of the melodies that emerged, and out of that exchange was born the concept of fashioning the original melody ... as it might be played by some of their friends in their own style. In all, fourteen people and a dog are featured in the Variations. Elgar was the dominant English composer of his time, and was knighted in 1904, awarded the Order of Merit in 1911, and made Master of the King’s Musick in 1924. Elgar wrote the Enigma Variations in 1899 and dedicated them “to my friends pictured within.” The theme and 14 variations belong to the period in which Elgar developed the style that placed him in the front rank of English composers. The beautifully lyrical Nimrod (Variation IX) is dedicated to the publisher A.J. Jaeger. (Nimrod is the great hunter of the bible; Jaeger is the German word for hunter.) Alfred Reed was born on Manhattan Island in New York City on January 25, 1921. His formal music training began at the age of 10, when he studied the trumpet. As a teenager, he played with small hotel combos in the Catskill Mountains. His interests shifted from performing to arranging and composition. In 1938, he started working in the Radio Workshop in New York as a staff composer/arranger and assistant conductor. With the onset of World War II, he enlisted and was assigned to the 529th Army Air Corps Band. During his three and a half years of service, he produced nearly 100 compositions and arrangements for band. His most notable composition was Russian Christmas Music, premiered in Denver on December 12th, 1944, which many say launched his career as a composer. After his discharge, Reed enrolled at the Juilliard School of Music and studied composition with Vittorio Giannini. In 1953, he enrolled at Baylor University, serving as conductor of the Symphony Orchestra while he earned the Bachelor of Music degree (1955) and his Master of Music degree (1956). His interest in the development of educational music led him to serve as executive editor of Hansen Publishing from 1955 to 1966. He left that position to become a professor of music at the University of Miami, where he served until his retirement in 1993. After retirement, he continued to compose and made numerous appearances as guest conductor in many nations, most notably in Japan with the Tokyo Kosei Wind Orchestra. At the age of 84, on September 17, 2005, Alfred Reed passed away. Program notes from Nikk Pilato and Alex Wimmer Arabesque Samuel Hazo (b. 1966) Arabesque was commissioned by the Indiana Bandmasters Association and written for the 2008 Indiana All-State Band. Arabesque (2009) is based in the mystical sounds of Middle Eastern music and it is composed in three parts. “Taqasim” (tah’-zeem), “dabka” (dupp-keh) and “chorale.” “Both sets of my grandparents immigrated to the United States; my mother’s parents were Lebanese, my father’s mother was Lebanese and his father was Assyrian. Sometimes in composition, the song comes from the heart, sometimes from the mind, and sometimes (as in this case) it’s in your blood. The Indiana Bandmasters Association asked for a piece that was unique. I had not heard any full-out Arabic pieces for wind orchestra, and I knew of this culture’s deep and rich musical properties… so I figured that one might as well come from me. (Plus, my mom asked if I was ever going to write one.)”~ Sam Hazo Samuel R. Hazo resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania with his wife and children. Mr. Hazo remains the only winner of both composition contests sponsored by the National Band Association. He has composed for the professional, university and public-school levels in addition to writing original scores for television, radio and the stage. Mr. Hazo was asked by the Newtown School District to compose the memorial for the children and women who were lost in the tragedy at their Sandy Hook Elementary School. The result was a major work for Choir, Orchestra and Wind Band combined titled “Glorificare.” Mr. Hazo also composed “Bridges,” which he was requested to write by Virginia Tech University following their tragic shootings. In 2012, two of Mr. Hazo’s compositions were performed at the London Summer Olympic Games. His compositions have been performed and recorded world-wide. Additionally, numerous titles of Mr. Hazo’s works are included in the series “Teaching Music Through Performance in Band.” He has served as composer-in-residence at Craig Kirchhoff ’s University of Minnesota Conducting Symposium and has also lectured on music and music education at universities and high schools internationally. Mr. Hazo was twice named “Teacher of Distinction” by the southwestern Pennsylvania Teachers’ Excellence Foundation. Program Notes by Samuel Hazo WindProgram Ensemble Notes Dancing Fire Kevin Day (b. 1996) When I was writing Dancing Fire, I wanted to write a piece for my high school band program and its directors for the great pieces we played, the fun times we had, and the excitement our bands created at our concerts. The picture I had in my head before I began writing was a group of people surrounding a large bonfire during the night.

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